Want to be a substitute teacher? Wichita schools could use you

When a Wichita teacher calls in sick or takes a personal day off, there’s usually a substitute who can fill in.

But not always.

“In those situations, we give the school notice that we’re not able to fill that position, and … we have various ways of covering it,” said Shannon Krysl, director of human resources for the district.

Sometimes the absent teacher’s students are redistributed among other classrooms, Krysl said. Other times, teachers are able to cover the class during their planning periods. Sometimes principals or assistant principals fill in for the day.

“We get it covered, but it’s not ideal,” she said.

District officials say their pool of substitute teachers and para-professionals is down slightly – about 730, compared with 780 last school year, Krysl said – so they’re implementing several measures to recruit more subs, fill jobs more efficiently and reduce last-minute cancellations.

Unlike previous years, the district is accepting applications and “onboarding” substitutes continually instead of only a few times a year, Krysl said. Officials also are analyzing data to see how often substitute teachers work, and they’re considering measures to encourage or require subs to accept assignments more frequently.

Substitute teachers earn $99 a day in Wichita schools. Those with a master’s degree or working long-term assignments make slightly more.

Steve Wentz, president of United Teachers of Wichita, said difficulties in finding substitutes end up increasing the burden on other teachers, who often are called on to supervise additional students or to monitor classes during their planning time.

“We consider it a really, really big issue,” Wentz said. “What’s happening is, people are being asked to cover classes, and there’s a misunderstanding, contractually, of what that means.

“People are being asked to do stuff that they should be getting compensated for. … Like so many other things, it’s a workload issue.”

Krysl said the local job market and other factors, including the number of college students graduating with education degrees, can affect the supply of substitute teachers. As full-time job prospects increase, fewer people work as subs.

Similarly, last spring, the Wichita district faced a critical shortage of bus drivers, which prompted First Student to host hiring events and offer a $500 signing bonus to attract more people to the job.

In January, the district will hold a job fair in hopes of boosting its pool of substitute teachers and para-professionals.

To work as a substitute teacher, a person must have a Kansas teaching license or apply for an emergency substitute license, which requires at least 60 college credit hours. Substitute paras must have a high school diploma.

Once an application has been processed, subs must complete a health physical, a drug test, a background check and a three- to four-hour training session, during which officials review expectations and teach subs how to use the district’s online sub-assignment system. Within five to 10 days, they can get their first assignment, Krysl said.

The Wichita district’s fill rate for substitutes is down more than a percentage point – 91.5 percent this year, compared to 92.7 percent last year – but still well above a decade ago, when the district struggled to cover more than 75 percent of teacher absences, Krysl said.

On an average day, about 300 Wichita teachers are absent, she said.

“Mondays and Fridays are harder to fill. That’s the way it’s been for years,” Krysl said.

District data shows that schools in south Wichita – “anything south of Kellogg,” Krysl said – have a harder time finding subs. It’s hard to find subs for “roving” teachers, such as elementary art or music teachers who work in two or more buildings each day. And half-day assignments are harder to fill than full days, particularly in the afternoons.

“I think the extended school day has something to do with it,” she said.

Each school day is 30 minutes longer than last year.

Every so often, teacher absences will spike unexpectedly. In December 2015, during country singer Garth Brooks’ four-night, six-concert run at Intrust Bank Arena, 600 Wichita teachers were absent at once – more than twice the usual number.

District officials later called it “the Garth Brooks effect,” Krysl said.

“There was no way we could fill all those slots, so we just sent an e-mail to principals saying ‘We’ve got a situation here,’ ” she said. “Because we weren’t expecting it, it was literally all hands on deck.

“We managed, but it just about threw us.”

This story was originally published November 24, 2016 at 6:40 AM with the headline "Want to be a substitute teacher? Wichita schools could use you."